Improving Organizational Culture Through Improving Individual Team Members - featuring Kit Bredimus - Episode #11

Released Thursday, 1st December 2016

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Improving Organizational Culture Through Improving Individual Team Members - featuring Kit Bredimus - Episode #11

Thursday, 1st December 2016

Good episode? Give it some love!

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Improving organizational culture in the healthcare environment can be an uphill battle. The stress and pressure of the jobs we do make it easy for discontent, frustration, and irritation to rule the vibe of the organization. But Kit Bredimus and his team at Midland Memorial Hospital were not happy with the continually low scores they received for patient satisfaction and sought ways to change the culture. What they discovered is that it’s impossible to change the organizational culture without positively changing the people who make up the culture. That meant creating ways to care for the individuals on the staff. The results have been nothing short of remarkable. You can hear this healthcare miracle story on this episode of the podcast.

How a terrible track record and awful organizational culture transformed.

The reputation of Midland Memorial Hospital in its own community was anything but stellar. The community didn’t trust the hospital to provide good care and the patient survey forms showed it to be true. Kit Bredimus grew up in the Midland area so he knew the challenge the team was up against when the hospital leadership began their consideration of The Values and Culture initiative. They were skeptical but were quickly proven wrong as the medical team at Midland Memorial began to take on a new life. You can hear the story on this episode, so be sure you listen.

What to do when the staff resists new hospital policies with a “flavor of the month” attitude.

Throughout the history of Midland Memorial Hospital, many things had been tried to turn around the sagging patient satisfaction scores. The efforts either didn’t work, didn’t stick, or were not taken seriously by the hospital staff so the results were nonexistent. When the Values and Culture Initiative was introduced many of the old timers at the hospital saw it as “the flavor of the month” - a new initiative that would be around for a while but would fade out fairly quickly. But something was different this time. One thing the leadership focused on got everyone on board and brought about lasting change. Find out what it was in this episode.

To improve organizational culture you’ve got to improve the lives of its members.

The primary approach that brings about true organizational change is not one that focuses on the desired outcomes or results that are needed. It’s an attitude from the leadership on down that fosters a sense of concern for the well-being of the team members who make up the culture of the organization. As individuals on the team begin to believe that the leadership wants them to be the best version of themselves that they can be - and makes opportunities for them to take steps in that direction - everything changes. On this episode of The Report Room, Kit Bredimus tells the story of how the emergency department at Midland Memorial Hospital went from the lowest percentile in patient satisfaction scores to the 95th percentile.

If organizational improvement doesn’t start with the leadership, it’s already dead.

The turnaround that happened at Midland Memorial Hospital in Midland, TX was only possible because the leadership team - from the top down - was entirely committed to making the changes needed and agreed on what it would take to bring about the improvements they wanted to see. That kind of unity is what it takes to change something as pervasive and powerful as organizational culture. Kit Bredimus tells how it happened at Midland Memorial and gives his suggestions for how medical services organizations with similar needs could begin moving in the right direction, on this episode.

Outline of This Episode

[0:43] My introduction of this episode’s guest, my friend Kit Bredimus
[1:27] The history and specifics of Midland Memorial Hospital.
[4:53] The values and culture initiative Midland started.
[6:57] The staff’s initial reactions to the ideas of improving values and culture.
[7:44] How the program started and progressed through its stages.
[11:58] When the team began to see improvements.
[13:22] The current state of Midland Memorial.
[15:35] The response Kit is getting from participants from the presentations he’s doing.
[18:31] The first steps an organization should take to make improvements.
[21:35] The next thing on the agenda for Midland Memorial.
[22:40] The team members who have been instrumental to the success.